World | India

Bihar orders speedy trial of pending rape cases

Village court bans provocative dresses for girls

By Lata Rani Correspondent

Published: 16:31 January 3, 2013

Patna: In a massive crackdown on rapists availing themselves of benefits from the country’s notoriously sluggish court system, the state government in Bihar headed by chief minister Nitish Kumar has put all the pending rape cases in the states on the fast tracks to deliver quick justice to the victims. Right now, there are a total of 482 rape cases in the state pending in various courts of Bihar for want of slow police investigations and non-filing of charge-sheets.

The development follows the continuing public outrage against the Delhi gang-rape which shocked the nation and demands by the protesting crowds for quicker trial of the accused.

Taking the issue seriously, the state government has now asked the police to investigate the rape cases on priority basis and submit the charge-sheets soon.

“We have decided to start speedy trial of rape cases in the state to ensure accused persons get quicker punishments,” the inspector general of police, Crime Investigation Department Arvind Pandey told the media on Thursday. He added that the cases related to all kinds of repression against women, such as, murder, killing for dowry, kidnapping and eve-teasing too would be put on the fast-track.

At present, a total of 482 rape cases are pending in various courts of Bihar awaiting trial. Of them, charge-sheets have been filed in only 58 cases. Likewise, a total of 183 cases of eve-teasing and 1,966 cases of kidnapping have been pending in the courts.

In another related development, a village court in Bihar has banned girls from wearing “sexy” jeans pants and skirts in view of the Delhi-gang rape incident, holding them responsible for all social ills. The mobile phones have also been banned for them. The ban has been enforced by the Siswan-Kala village court in north Bihar’s Siwan district having good Muslim populations after a formal meeting held on Wednesday.

The village court has also imposed a fine of Rs5,000 on the parents whose children are caught violating the order.

“We are really ashamed of the Delhi gang-rape incident, and the fast-creeping western cultures which are slowly polluting the social atmosphere are more to be blamed for all this. Dressing sense makes a lot of difference,” the local Sarpanch (head of the local village court) Vijaykant Singh said today.

“So, we have completely banned the use of provocative dresses for girls in the areas and those who are caught violating the order will have their parents cough up Rs5,000,” said Singh adding, “Provocative dresses were encouraging cases of rape and eve-teasing”.